Australia

Australian shares are set to open lower, after US fell ahead of the Fed's rate decision.

ASX futures were down 0.14% or 12 points as of 9:00am on Wednesday, suggesting a lower open.

US stocks declined as the Federal Reserve began its two-day rate-setting meeting. Investors overwhelmingly expect another quarter-point interest-rate cut.

The bigger question is whether the resilience of the economy will lead the Fed to be more cautious about future easing. Data Tuesday showed sales at retailers increased 0.7% in November from a month earlier.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3% as the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.6% for its ninth straight loss and its longest losing streak since 1978. The S&P 500 lost 0.4%.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil was down 0.81% to US$73.31 a barrel, while gold was down 0.17% to US$2,648.16.

The Australian dollar was at 63.37 US cents, down from its previous close of 63.69.

Asia

Chinese shares closed lower. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 0.7% to 3,361.48, and the Shenzhen Composite Index slipped 1.7% to 2,013.78.

Hong Kong shares ended lower. The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 0.5% to 19,700.48.

Japanese shares closed lower. The Nikkei Stock Average declined 0.2% to 39,364.68.

India shares ended lower. The BSE SENSEX fell 1.3% to 80,684.45.

Europe

Stocks in the U.K. finished lower. The FTSE 100 Index fell 0.8% to 8,195.2.

In Europe, shares closed mixed. Germany's DAX fell 0.3% to 20,246.37, and France's CAC 40 increased 0.1% to 7,365.7.

North America

U.S. stocks ended lower. The DJIA fell 0.6% to 43,449.9, the S&P 500 slipped 0.4% to 6,050.61, and the Nasdaq dropped 0.3% to 20,109.06.

Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were Pfizer Inc PFE surging 4.67%, Fox Corp FOXA jumped 4.27%, and Fox Corp FOX lifted 4.08%.

The biggest decliners were Humana Inc HUM which dropped 10.20%, Amentum Holdings Inc AMTM fell 9.55%, and CVS Health Corp CVS lost 5.49%.